At one time or another, we've all had difficulty getting a good signal on our phones. Usually it's a matter of traveling through a location with bad reception, but more persistent signal strength issues may be a sign that the phone itself could use some help. Before posting that rant about your wireless provider's network quality, there are a number of ways that have assisted Android users in boosting their signal strength.

Boost the Signal on an Android Device

Step 1

Install a signal strength tester. Using the bars on your phone to judge signal strength may be okay for general purposes, but if you're truly concerned about signal interference, you'll need something more specific. Visit the Google Play app store (link in Resources) or your preferred app market for several signal testing app options.

Step 2

Familiarize yourself with the location of the phone's antenna. It may not be an iPhone 4, but your Android phone's antenna can still be adversely affected by how you hold it. Simply changing your usual hand position may give your signal level a boost.

Step 3

Test signal strength with and without the phone's case (if you use one). Certain cases have been known to interfere with signal strength -- it's rare, but it happens. Conversely, some cases are designed to actually boost signal strength, such as those made by Pong Research (link in Resources).

Step 4

Clean the contacts on your phone. Signal strength can be affected by poor connections with the SIM card and battery contacts. Remove and check to see if any dust or debris may have built up, and rub the metal contacts with a pencil eraser. Blow or tap away any eraser shavings when you're through. Even if there's no visible dirt, sometimes simply removing and re-seating the SIM card and battery can restore some lost signal strength.

Step 5

Install a signal boosting app. The Android app markets have a number of apps that purport to boost the signal, often by cycling through available networks to find the strongest connection. Look carefully at the reviews of each app and especially at the reviewers' devices, if stated -- the usefulness of these apps tends to be very hardware-dependent, and results are definitely not guaranteed.

Step 6

Install an antenna booster. These devices typically come as a metal-printed sticker that fits behind your battery. Whether or not such accessories actually improve signal strength is a matter of some debate, although some users have reported improvements.

Step 7

Install a signal booster or repeater. If the majority of people at your business are complaining about signal strength issues, a stationary booster may be the ideal solution. Cradle boosters such as those from Wilson Electronics or standalone devices such as the Wi-Ex zBoost (links in Resources) amplify a weak signal within a short range of phone use. They can be a relatively expensive solution, and not a truly mobile one, but may solve "dead spot" issues for specific locations.

Step 8

Replace your device. As a last resort, you may simply need to replace your Android phone with another of the same model (if you happened to get a "lemon"), or even with another model completely.